The 2004 Indian general election polls in Tamil Nadu were held for 39 seats in the state. The result was a victory for the Democratic Progressive Alliance, which included the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and its allies the Left Front which won all 39 seats in the state. DMK and its allies were also able to hold on to Pondicherry, which has 1 seat, which allowed the UPA to win all 40 seats in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry. The 2 larger partners Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) (16) and Indian National Congress (INC) (10) won the majority of seats, with the junior partners Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) (5) and Marumaralarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) (4) winning the rest. The remaining 4 seats were won by the Left Front parties. Due to the support of the Left Front for the government at the centre, all 39 seats in Tamil Nadu, supported the formation of the UPA-led government.

The DPA was formed, because DMK, PMK and MDMK, left the NDA mostly on the Ayodhya issue and created an alliance that supported the UPA. The NDA paid a price for it, when their BJP-AIADMK alliance could not even win a seat in this state.

Schedule

EventDate Date for Nominations 16 April 2004 Last Date for filing Nominations 23 April 2004 Date for scrutiny of nominations 24 April 2004 Last date for withdrawal of candidatures 26 April 2004 Date of poll 10 May 2004 Date of counting 13 May 2004

Seat allotments Democratic Progressive Alliance colspan="6" Democratic Progressive Alliance Party Flag Symbol Leader Seats M. Karunanidhi 15 K. M. Kader Mohideen 1 G. K. Vasan 9 P. Chidambaram1 S. Ramadoss 5 Vaiko 4 R. Nallakannu 2 N. Varadarajan 2 Total39

National Democratic Alliance colspan="6" National Democratic Alliance Party Flag Symbol Leader Seats J. Jayalalithaa 33 C. P. Radhakrishnan 6 Total39

People's alliance PartyFlagSymbolLeaderSeats contestedViduthalai Chiruthaigal KatchiThol. Thirumavalavan825Makkal Tamil Desam KatchiR. S. Raja Kannappan5Puthiya TamilagamK. Krishnasamy5Janata Dal (United)George Fernandes3Indian National LeagueJanab3 Puratchi Council 1

Fourth front PartyFlagElection symbolLeaderSeats contestedJanata PartySubramanian Swamy2131Puthiya Needhi KatchiA. C. Shanmugam10

Note: The janata party and puthiya Needhi Katchi contested in janata party's symbol

List of Candidates ConstituencyUPANDA # Name Party Candidate Party Candidate 1 Chennai North C. Kuppusami M. N. Sukumaran Nambiyar 2 Chennai Central Dayanidhi Maran N. Balaganga 3 Chennai South T. R. Baalu Bader Sayeed 4 Sriperumbudur A. Krishnaswamy P. Venugopal 5 Chengalpattu A. K. Moorthy K. N. Ramachandran 6 Arakkonam R. Velu N. Shanmugham 7 Vellore K. M. Kader Mohideen A. Santhanam 8 Tiruppattur D. Venugopal K. G. Subramani 9 Vandavasi N. Ramachandran Gingee R. Rajalakshmi 10 Tindivanam K. Dhanaraju A. Arunmozhithevan 11 Cuddalore K. Venkatapathy R. Rajendran 12 Chidambaram E. Ponnuswamy Tada N. Periyasamy 13 Dharmapuri R. Senthil P. D. Elangovan 14 Krishnagiri E. G. Sugavanam K. Nanju Gowda 15 Rasipuram K. Rani S. Anbalagan 16 Salem K. V. Thangabalu A. Rajshekharan 17 Tiruchengode K. Subbulakshmi Jagadisan Edappadi K. Palanisamy 18 Nilgiris R. Prabhu Master Mathan 19 Gobichettipalayam E. V. K. S. Elangovan N. R. Govindarajar 20 Coimbatore K. Subbarayan C. P. Radhakrishnan 21 Pollachi C. Krishnan G. Murugan 22 Palani S. K. Kharvendhan K. Kishore Kumar 23 Dindigul N. S. V. Chitthan M. Jeyaraman 24 Madurai P. Mohan A. K. Bose 25 Periyakulam J. M. Aaron Rasheed T. T. V. Dhinakaran 26 Karur K. C. Palanisamy N. Palanisamy Raja 27 Tiruchirappalli L. Ganesan M. Paranjothi 28 Perambalur A. Raja M. Sundaram 29 Mayiladuthurai Mani Shankar Aiyar O. S. Manian 30 Nagapattinam A. K. S. Vijayan P. J. Arjunan 31 Thanjavur S. S. Palanimanickam K. Thangamuthu 32 Pudukkottai S. Regupathy A. Ravichandran 33 Sivaganga P. Chidambaram S. P. Karuppaih 34 Ramanathapuram M. S. K. Bhavani Rajendran C. Murugesan 35 Sivakasi A. Ravichandran P. Kannan 36 Tirunelveli R. Dhanushkodi Aadhithan R. Amirtha Ganesan 37 Tenkasi M. Appadurai S. Murugesan 38 Tiruchendur Radhika Selvi T. Dhamodharan 39 Nagercoil A. V. Bellarmin Pon Radhakrishnan

Opinion Polls Polling agencyDate publishedLeadRef.DPANDAOthersIndian Express-NDTV-AC Nielsen April 2004 5

Voting and results

Results by Pre-Poll Alliance

AlliancePartyPopular VotePercentageSwingSeats wonSeat ChangeUnited Progressive AllianceDravida Munnetra Kazhagam7,064,39324.60%1.47%164Indian National Congress4,134,25514.40%3.30%108Pattali Makkal Katchi1,927,3676.71%1.50%5Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam1,679,8705.95%0.10%4Communist Party of India852,9812.97%0.41%22Communist Party of India (Marxist)824,5242.87%0.52%21Total16,483,39057.50%4.10%3915National Democratic AllianceAll India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam8,547,01429.77%3.05%010Bharatiya Janata Party1,455,8995.07%2.07%04Total10,002,91334.84%0.98%014Independents947,9383.30%2.05%0Other Parties (13 parties)2,228,2124.36%7.13%01Total28,714,515100.00%39Valid Votes28,714,51599.94%Invalid Votes18,4390.06%Total Votes28,732,954100.00%Registered Voters/Turnout47,252,27160.81%2.83%

†: Seat change represents seats won in terms of the current alliances, which is considerably different from the last election. Also the seat change for BJP, includes the merged party MADMK, who won 1 seat in the last election. ‡: Vote % reflects the percentage of votes the party received compared to the entire electorate that voted in this election. Adjusted (Adj.) Vote %, reflects the % of votes the party received per constituency that they contested. Sources: Election Commission of India

1999 vs. 2004 Alliance Coalition/Alliance Parties contesting in Tamil Nadu from the Alliance in 1999 Seats won in 1999 Election Parties contesting in Tamil Nadu from the Alliance in 2004 Seats won in 2004 Election Swing National Democratic Alliance -Bharatiya Janata Party (4)-Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (12)-Marumaralarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (4)-Pattali Makkal Katchi (5)-MGR Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (1) 26 -Bharatiya Janata Party-All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 0 −26 United Progressive Alliance* Indian National Congress (2)All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (10) 12 -Indian National Congress (10)-Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (16)-Marumaralarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (4)-Pattali Makkal Katchi (5) 35 +23 Left Front Communist Party of IndiaCommunist Party of India (Marxist) (1) 1 Communist Party of India (2)Communist Party of India (Marxist) (2) 4 +3

Note: UPA was not in existence in 1999, instead the number of seats won in 1999, represents the seats won by Indian National Congress and its allies. Note: INC affiliated parties, are parties that did not form an alliance or coalition with Congress party, but instead gave outside support. Note: Left front, whose parties were allies of DMK in Tamil Nadu, was not part of the UPA, in 2004, instead gave outside support.

List of Elected MPs

Constituency Winner Runner Up Margin % # Name Candidate Party Votes % Candidate Party Votes %1Madras NorthC. KuppusamiDMK570,12262.25Sukumar NambiarBJP316,58334.57253,53927.682Madras CentralDayanidhi MaranDMK316,32961.68N. BalagangaADMK182,15135.52134,17826.163Madras SouthT. R. BaaluDMK564,57860.41F. Bader SayeedADMK343,83836.79220,74023.624Sriperumbudur (SC)A. KrishnaswamyDMK517,61761.39Dr. P. VenugopalADMK282,27133.48235,34627.915ChengalpattuA. K. MoorthyPMK431,64356.86K. N. RamachandranADMK282,91937.27148,72419.596ArakkonamR. VeluPMK386,91149.90N. ShanmugamADMK284,71536.72102,19613.187VelloreK. M. Kader MohideenDMK436,64258.46A. SanthanamADMK258,03234.55178,61023.918TiruppatturD. VenugopalDMK453,78658.47K. G. SubramaniADMK272,88435.16180,90223.319VandavasiN. RamachandranMDMK394,90356.15R. RajalakshmiADMK243,47034.62151,43321.5310TindivanamK. DhanarajuPMK367,84950.60A. ArunmozhithevanADMK276,68538.0691,16412.5411CuddaloreK. VenkatapathyDMK400,05952.63R. RajendranADMK268,70735.35131,35217.2812Chidambaram (SC)E. PonnuswamyPMK343,42446.20Thol. ThirumavalavanJD(U)255,77334.4187,65111.7913DharmapuriR. SenthilPMK397,54055.99P. D. ElangovanBJP181,45025.56216,09030.4414KrishnagiriE. G. SugavanamDMK403,29754.59K. Nanje GowduADMK284,07538.45119,22216.1415Rasipuram (SC)K. RaniINC384,17055.20S. AnbalaganADMK249,63735.87134,53319.3316SalemK. V. ThangkabaluINC444,59159.96A. RajasekaranADMK268,96436.28175,62723.6917TiruchengodeSubbulakshmi J.DMK501,56958.02K. PalaniswamiADMK322,17237.27179,39720.7518NilgirisR. PrabhuINC494,12163.28Master MathanBJP257,61932.99236,50230.2919GobichettipalayamE. V. K. S. ElangovanINC426,82662.76N. R. GovindarajarADMK212,34931.22214,47731.5420CoimbatoreK. SubbarayanCPI504,98157.46C. P. RadhakrishnanBJP340,47638.74164,50518.7221Pollachi (SC)C. KrishnanMDMK364,98856.76G. MuruganADMK244,06737.96120,92118.8122PalaniS. K. KharventhanINC448,90064.55K. Kishore KumarADMK217,40731.26231,49333.2923DindigulN. S. V. ChitthanINC407,11658.98M. JeyaramanADMK251,94536.50155,17122.4824MaduraiP. MohanCPI(M)414,43356.03A. K. BoseADMK281,59338.07132,84017.9625PeriyakulamJ. M. Aaron RashidINC346,85149.51T. T. V. DhinakaranADMK325,69646.4921,1553.0226KarurK. C. PalanisamyDMK450,40760.57N. Raja PalanichamyADMK259,53134.90190,87625.6727TiruchirappalliL. GanesanMDMK450,90763.68M. ParanjothiADMK234,18233.07216,72530.6028Perambalur (SC)A. RajaDMK389,70855.12Dr. M. SundaramADMK236,37533.43153,33321.6929MayiladuthuraiMani Shankar AiyarINC411,16059.11O. S. ManianADMK215,46930.97195,69128.1330Nagapattinam (SC)A. K. S. VijayanDMK463,38961.67P J. ArchunanADMK247,16632.89216,22328.7731ThanjavurS. S. PalanimanickamDMK400,98656.58K. ThangamuthuADMK281,83839.77119,14816.8132PudukkottaiS. RegupathyDMK466,13356.83A. RavichandranADMK309,63737.75156,49619.0833SivagangaP. ChidambaramINC400,39360.01S P. KaruppiahADMK237,66835.62162,72524.3934RamanathapuramBhavani RajenthiranDMK335,28749.72C. MurugesanADMK225,33733.41109,95016.3035SivakasiA. RavichandranMDMK469,07256.47P. KannanADMK304,55536.66164,51719.8136TirunelveliR. Dhanuskodi AthithanINC370,12758.40R. Amirtha GanesanADMK203,05232.04167,07526.3637Tenkasi (SC)M. AppaduraiCPI348,00048.87S. MurugesanADMK225,82431.71122,17617.1638TiruchendurV. Radhika SelviDMK394,48462.52T. ThamodaranADMK212,80333.72181,68128.7939NagercoilA. V. BellarminCPI(M)410,09160.88Pon RadhakrishnanBJP245,79736.49164,29424.39

Post Election Analysis

Source: NES Election 2004 Analysis

+ Voting Pattern in Tamil Nadu Category DMK+ AIADMK+ OthersGender Male54%32%14% Female49%39%12%Locality Rural50%35%15% Urban57%36%7%Social class Very poor44%37%17% Poor55%31%14% Lower middle57%37%6% Middle51%39%10%Caste Upper caste33%54%13% Thevar50%47%3% Vanniyars61%33%6% Chettiyars47%30%23% Gounders57%33%10% Nadars57%36%7% Lower OBCs55%33%12% Chekkliyars, Pallars, etc.39%38%23% other Dalits40%37%23% Muslims78%11%11%Tell me how good each of the leaders are for Tamil Nadu...+ Karunanidhi rated better than Jayalalithaa Rating J. Jayalalithaa M. Karunanidhi Bad51%2% Average31%33% Good11%39% Very good3%23% Do not know4%3%

Post-election Union Council of Ministers from Tamil Nadu Source: The Hindu After the UPA victory in this election, Tamil Nadu was rewarded with 12 berths in Union Council of Ministers, with 6 cabinet berths, which is the most this state has ever received after an election. 7 of the Ministers were from DMK, 2 from PMK, while the rest were from Congress.

Cabinet Ministers MinisterPartyLok Sabha Constituency/Rajya SabhaPortfoliosP. ChidambaramINCSivagangaMinister of FinanceMani Shankar AiyarINCMayiladuthuraiMinister of Panchayati Raj and Minister of Development of North Eastern RegionT. R. BaaluDMKChennai SouthMinister of Shipping, Road Transport and HighwaysA. RajaDMKPerambalur (SC)Minister of Environment and ForestsDayanidhi MaranDMKChennai CentralMinister of Communications and Information TechnologyAnbumani RamadossPMKRajya SabhaMinister of Health and Family Welfare

Ministers of State